3. So I went down to the potter’s house. I saw him working at the potter’s wheel.
4. He was making a pot from clay. But something went wrong with it. So the potter used that clay to make another pot. He used his hands to shape the pot the way that he wanted it to be.
5. Then the Lord spoke his word to me:
6. “Family of Israel, can’t I do the same thing with you?” says the Lord. “You are like the clay in the potter’s hands.
7. There may come a time when I will speak about a nation or a kingdom. I might say I will pull that nation up by its roots. Or I might say I will pull that nation down and destroy it.
8. But if the people of that nation are sorry for the evil they have done, I would change my mind. I would not carry out my plans to bring disaster to them.
9. There may come another time when I will speak about a nation. I might say that I will build up and plant that nation.
10. But if I see it doing evil by not obeying me, I would change my mind. I would not carry out my plans to do good for them.
11. “So, say this to the people of Judah and those who live in Jerusalem: ‘This is what the Lord says: I am preparing disaster for you right now. I am making plans against you. So stop doing the evil you are doing. Change your ways and do what is right.’